Snow-plow



S. RICHARDS.

Car-Track Clearer.

No. 19,950. Patented Apr. 13, 1858.

N. PETERS,PNOTO-LITHOGRAPHER. WASHINGTON. DV 0.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SAMUEL RICHARDS, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

SNOW-PLOW.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 19,950, dated April 13, 1858.; Reissued July 9, r

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL RICHARDS, of the city of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Snow-Plows; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full and exact description of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings, making a part of this specification, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved plow, and Fig. 2 is a view of the vupper part detached. Fig. 3 is a view of the internal frame for operating a guide piece herein described.

Myinvention consists in an improvement on a snow plow for which Letters Patent were granted to me May 13, 1856, and has for its object the adjustment of the central vertical planes (described in that patent) so that the snow on the track after being raised up to the level of the surrounding snow can be all pressed or thrown over laterally on to either side. This capacity of discharging the snow on either side is of importance where there is cutting or embankment near one side of the track and none on the other side, or where there is a double track or at sidelings. In such cases it would be manifestly important to discharge all the snow on to one side instead of equally on both sides of the track. As the locomotive and train pass along it is obvious that the relative position of embankments or other obstructions to the lateral discharge of the snow will be constantly changing from one to the other side of the track and hence any arrangement or device having the above object in view should be such that the position of the vertical discharging snow planes could be rapidly and conveniently changed while the locomotive is in motion.

In order to attain the advantages of changing the relative position and action of the vertical discharging planes from one side to the other side of the track, I arrange upon the main inclined plane A of the snovs plow a central groove a a extending very nearly from top to bottom of the plane A, and two transverse grooves b b and 0, 0' at right angles to each other and extending very nearly across the main plane A. My vertical planes are constructed in a single block or piece of a triangular prismatical form as shown at Fig. 2 having on its under side two projections d, cl, or lugs to fit into the grooves in the plane A above described and having also attached to its upper part a rack E E attached by meansof a universal joint. The block is so placed as to slide up and down on the main plane of the projections d cl being in the grooves of the main plane as shown by Fig. 1. The block D is slid up and down by means of the rack E E and a pinion F and a crank G so placed as to be under the control of the workman or an assistant.

The block D, in sliding up or down is made to have its point pass to one side or the other on the main inclined plane A by means of a little turning guide H which has one grooveh made diametrically across it. This little turning guide is supported below upon a pivot so that it can freely turn and thus assume any one of the three positions shown by the colored lines on the drawing. When turned into one position this guide forms a continuous groove from a, along, it, and down a and then if the block A were slid down, its point would pass right down the center of the main inclined plane to the lower extremity 'of a, and the snow would be discharged equally on both sides of the plow. When the piece H is turned into a second position it will form a continuous groove from a, down it, and along I) and would cause the point of the block D when slid down to assume a position on b and thus throw the snow all over to the opposite side of the plow. When the piece H isturned into a third position it causes the point of the block D, to assume the position upon C and thus throw all the'snow over to the opposite side of the plow from C. The revolving guide piece H is made to turn into either of the three positions above named by means of a concealed frame work such as shown in Fig. 3. It consists of a piece I attached to the center guide H. This piece I is also attached at its extremities to the pieces J and K by pivots or rivets and at the upper extremity'J and K by the cross piece L. The arrangement of this parallelogram so composed is such that by moving the handle M into the position M the pieces can be made to assume the relative position I J K L or by moving it into position M the frame can be made to assume the posit-ion I J K L. This frame I J K L is attached to the under side of the main plane A'and the handle M is placed on the insideof the assistants or Workmans covering or protection N.

The operation of the improvement is as follows: The block D is elevated to the top of the main plane. The assistant or operator occupies a position in the housing N Within convenient reach of the handle or crank G and also of the handle M. If the engineer perceives that the snow can be freely discharged on both sides of the plow he takes the handle M and adjusts the guide H so as to occupy the position coinciding with the direction of a and a. He then by means of the crank' G turns the pinion and pushes the block D down the main plane. If he Wishes for any reason to discharge the snow all on one side, by means of the crank he raises the block D, and then adjusts by means of the handle M the guide H so as to cause the point of D 'to pass to the right or left at his pleasure when it is slid down as above described. Thus it will be seen that my improved arrangement constitutes a snow plow having its vertical planes adjustable at the same time both up and down the surface of the plane in a central position, so

as to suit various depths of snow, or movable to the right or left, and at the same time to any height, thus enabling it to be equally efiicient in all depths of snow, and Where there is a double or single track, &c.

I do not desire to claim herein the adjustment of the vertical planes up or down the inclined plane alone, or the adjustment of said vertical planes to the right or left side, separately considered. But

What I do desire to claim, and to secure by Letters Patent, as an improvement on my former patent of May 13th, 1856, is

The snow plow having vertical planes made adjustable at the same time both up and down the inclined plane, and from side to side; whereby it is rendered equally effective in passing from light snow to deep snow, and in throwing the snow to either side of the track at pleasure, the whole being arranged and operating substantially as above described.

' SAMUEL RICHARDS.

Witnesses:

J E. SHAW, JNo. B. KENNEY.

[Fms'r PRINTED 1912.] 

